1. I was asked to write a short story for a collection of photos called Still by Roelof Bakker and I was busy trying to come up with something. I have just finished the first draft and am hoping it’s not too strange.

2. (And more importantly) I read the book I was supposed to be writing.

Damn, I hate that when that happens.

OK, maybe not exactly the same book. But close enough for me to drop my pen, hold my head in my hands and cry.

My husband, always the reasoned one, said, But didn’t you check to see if anyone had written something like this?

Well, I did check. But I typed in Singapore. Not Hong Kong where this particular story was set.

The book is The Piano Teacher, set during and after WWII. The characters are British and Chinese. It is a love story of sorts. All the things I was going to write about. But in Singapore. Not HONG KONG!!

After hyperventilating I’ve decided to keep going for now. There are differences. Which I won’t go into because it’s all suppose to be a surprise.